Target pistol



Dec. 4 1923.

though applicable to other purposes.

Patented Dec. 4, 1923.

HAROLD WESSON AND EDWARD S. POlvIEROY, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, AS-v SIGNORS, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO SMITH AND NESSOLL INC., OF SPRING- FIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION GF MASSACHUSETTS.

TARGET PISTOL.

Application filed July 22, 1921.

To all @from t may conce/"ft:

Be it known that we, HAROLD TNilsson and EDWARD lS. PoMnnoY, both citizens of the United States of America, residing in Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Target Pistols, of which the following is a specication.

This invention relates to pistols designed particularly for use in target practice,Fal-

or such use it is desirable to have a long barrel and a comparatively heavy stock, so that the center of gravity shall be kept as lou7 as possible, in order thereby to minimize the tendency of the recoil to throw up the muzzle in tiring. The present invention at- I tains these advantages and also shortens the pistol as much as possible without reducing the length of the barrel from its standard length (of ten inches).

The invention in its preferred form provides a single loading pistol having its barrel hung to the frame on a vertical axis, so that to open the breech the barrel is swung laterally with reference to the stock. This swinging movement operates an extractor for withdrawing the .empty shell. The arm is designed to be reloaded by hand. It has a breech block which is fixed integrally to the frame, and a lock is provided for locking i the barrel and frame togetherl when the barrel is aligned with the frame in firingposition. The hammer is formed as a longitudinallyfmovable slide, and is preferably drawn back by hand for cocking. The sear operates so nearly at right angles to the hammer as to permit of tiring with a light trigger pull, which is desirable in target practice.

The preferred construction is shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure l is a side elevation, partly broken away, in vertical longitudinal mid-section;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section line on the line 2-2 in Fig. l, showing the barrel locked fast to the frame, as in Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a similar-horizontal section, but showing the barrel swung to the position for extracting the spent shell and reloading;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation, on a reduced scale, of the opposite side of the arm from Serial No. 486,680.

that shown in Fig. l, showing the hammer cocked;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the hammer;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the extractor;

Fig. 7 is a plan and side elevation of the extractor cam.

In the drawings, A is the main frame and B the barrel, which are pivoted together on a vertical axis a coinciding with the midlongitudinal plane of the arm. The barrel accordingly is swingable laterally around this axis to open the breech. The frame A includes the stock, which is shaped and located as in the usual automatic pistols where the magazine is introduced within the stock or grip. lThe present pistol, however, being preferably a single loader, has no such magazine, the grip portion of the stock being utilized only for the sear and trigger, and their connection. The frame A has the breech block C projecting upwardly from it behind the barrel, and formed preferably integrally with it, this breech block being` solid, except for the perforation through which acts the firing pin b carried bythe hammer D.

The hammer D is shown separately in Fig. 5. It is formed with a longitudinal sliding portion E which may be cylindrical, and which works in a longitudinal guiding recess formed in the frame A beneath the barrel. The rear portion of the slide E projects out through an opening at the rear of the frame, and is formed with a head or upward extension c which carries the pin Z), and' is also formed with a cooking grip d, by which the hammer may be conveniently grasped and pulled backward in a straight line for cooking'. The head projects in rear of the breech block C. rlfhe main spring F, which impels the hammer forward, is shown as a helical spring housed in a recess bored out within the slide E and reacting rear- `wardly against a plug c which is fastened by a pin 7' to the frame A, and reacting forwardly against a flange on an arrester plug g which in turn abuts against a bushing Zz screwed into the front end of the hammer slide E. The action of the main spring ceases when the arrester plug strikes the abutment in advance of it. The hammer has a slot on opposite sides, through which the stationary pin f passes. A rebound Y shoulder nutY 1" spring j is mounted in the hammer socket to the rear of the plug e, and acts to press back the hammer alter tiring.

The scar G is mounted to slide vertically in the trame, being pressed up by a sear spring 7s' which react downwardly a screw plug` 7c. The is best iiormed as a` cylindrical pin sliding in a cylindrical hole drilled upwardly through the frame. Its movement is limited by a stationary pin Z in the trame engaging a notch. in the sear. The upper end ot the sear has a m which engages the cooking shoulder n (Fig. 5) on the underside or". the hammer. These shoulders may engage in a vertical plane, but preferably are slightly inclined backward, so that the trigger action is not too sensia ive. The screw t" adjusts the trigger pull.

The scar is operated hy the through an elbow lever I pivo" frame, its long arm engaging a slot. in trigger, and its short arm formed as a toe entering` a notch fp in the scar so to press down on a shoulder Q to withdraw the sear. The trigger H is shown as formed with the usual slide H having' a parallel longitudinal movement` in a sll'leway formed in the trame. ,The action is limited in its forward movement by a pin Q, and in its rearward movement by the end oft the slot in which the slide H moves. The action may be adjusted by making the pin g larger or smaller; or in any other convenient way.

The barrel is pivoted upon the frame in such manner as to permit it to sii/'ing in a horizontal plane for opening the breech, and yet so as to securely loch it to the frame/E when in the tiring position. The barrel turns on an Upright pin r which may be fastened to either the barrel trame, but preferably lo the barrel, and which is shown as tixedly united ait its upper end to the barrel, and as projecting down through a close htting hole in the trame and receiving a lock on its lower end, whereby to hold down the barrel. The barrel also is termed with undercut projectionsv s s, renown in Fig. 4, which enter correspomVV no in the frame, these parts being fined in arcs ot a, circle the center ot which is on the axis a, as shown in Q and rhus the projections s c form in eifect trunnion portions which engage under corresponding shoulders on the trame and hold the barrel locked down lirmly to the trame in the tir-- ing posit-ion. For locking the barrel fast in this position. a locking bolt il is provided, which is shown housed in a recess t in the lower part ot". the barrel, pressed out by a spring t which is housed in a recess within the holt, and the bolt is formed with a lateral arm carrying a linger-piece J" lying close against the exterior of the barrel, to be 'trom the frame; the arm carrying 'er-piece moves in a slot u which is over and concealed by the finger- Y The end of therbolt J, which lis preferably beveled, as shown in Fig. 2, en-

f cerrespondinglyV shaped notch or socket` termed in the 'frame A.

'he extractor or ejector L is sho-wn separately in 6. It has a sliding portion L, preferably cylindrical, Vwhich moves in al correspondingly shaped longitudinal recess vtm'noafl in the barrel beneath the cartridge chamber. It is pressed forward by a spring` o, which is shown as a helical spring housed in a chamber bored out within the slide iortion L pressing forwardly against the closed end of such chamberand reacting rearwardly against a block 0r plug w which is fastened by a pin to to the barrel, the extractor slide having longitudinal slots a' through which the pin fw passes, and which are oi sucicntlength to permit the longitudinal movement of the extractor. rll`he extractor L projects upwardly from its slide L, this projection fitting into a notch. cut in the lowr' part of the barrel, and being shaped to engage the lower half ot the rim ot the cartridge shell, so that as the extractor is moved rearwardly relatively to the barrel, it pushes out the spent shell. For giving` it this rearward movement coincidently iith the swinging movement Vof the barrel, a cam device is provided, which will now be explained.

Pivoted on the pin r is an oscillating extractor" cam M, shown separately in Fig. 7. This cam is mainly cylindrical .in form and has a notch l1 on its upper face, one side of which notch is curved to form a cam 12. rhe extractor has a projection 18 which in its normal position enters the notch ll, this projection having, as shown in Fig. 2, a c rved face which coactswith the cam face so tha., as the barrel is swung out of line with the frame A, and while the cam M 's heid stationary by. being locked to the trame, the cam action ot' these faces against each other pushes back the extractor, so

en "t is carried out to the position shown in in which it draws the spent shell ont ot the barrel and either ejects it or leaves it so far out that it may be easily grasped and pulled out by hand. vTo accomplish this camming ont of the extractor it might su'lice to have thecam M locked fast to the tra-me A in any suitable manner; but it is preferable to loch itto the trame A only temporarily. and tor a portion ofthe swinging movement ofthe barrel. For this purpose it is formed with a catch or detent N L recess 'formed tanqentially across the lower part of the cam M, having on one end a beveled head lll, and on the'ot-herend which is formed/as a slide moving in a j a head 15; this head projects sufficiently so that shortly after the beginning of the turning movement of the barrel, it engages a shoulder 16 (Fig. 2) on the frame, whereby7 it temporarily locks the cam M fast to the frame A, so that the cam face 12 may cam back the extractor, as described. This locking fast continues until, by the further swinging of the barrel, a shoulder 17 on the latter bears agains-t the outer face of the head 1,5 and presses in the detent N until its head no longer engages the shoulder 16, but passes within the curved recess 18 in the frame A. This releases the cam M and permits the extractor spring to throw forward the extractor, and in so doing to turn forward the cam M, this, however, being an idle movement. This movement is limited by the projecting advance end 19 of the detent N striking the shoulder 2O on the frame, whereby the cam M is again stopped and held stationary, and if the swinging movement of the barrel is continued further (which is unnecessary), the cam M, by reason of the engagement of its face 12 with Vthe tail 13 on the extractor, again projects the extractor. 0n thereturn movement of the barrel the cam M is restored to its first position, the curved cam face 14 on the detent N engaging a shoulder 21 0n the frame to press back the detent to its original position with its head 15 projecting, ready for the next operation. To prevent accidental movements of the detent N, it is provided with a. friction spring 22, being a leaf spring held in a notch in the detent with its ends against the ends of the notch and its bowed middle bearing against the wall of the recess in which the detent moves. As seen in Fig. 2, the pin r is partly cut away to permit the full entry'of the tail 13 in the normal position of the extractor.

The operation of the arm will be obvious from the foregoing description. The loading operation leaves the hammer uncocked, and the operator grasps the head l and pulls it back to cock the arm, its position being then as shown in Fig. L1; the pulling of the trigger lowers the sear and releases the hammer, which slides forward, its pin striking the cartridge base and firing the arm; the operator then presses back the locking bolt J and swings the barrel around substantially ninety degrees, in which movement the extractor pushes out the spent shell. which is then removed; the operator then pushes in a new cartridge and restores the barrel to its original position. where it is locked b v the spring bolt J. The arm is then ready to be. recocl-:ed and retired.

The described construction may be varied or modified in many respects, those features which are essential to the invention being denne-d in the ap-pended claims.

The advantages of the new construction will be apparent. The barrel is carried as far back as possible with reference to the stock, so that the arm is shortened without reducing the length of the barrel. The breech is located to the rear of the stock, and the stock is in a desirable position beneath the barrel, with the center of gravity carried as low as possible. The resulting arm has the maximum of accuracy, convenience and compactness, with the minimum of rebound. The lockwork is carried wholly within the stock, and its construction is very simple; the scar spring` acts also through the trigger lever as a trigger spring.

XVe claim as our invention:

1. A pistol comprising a frame and stock formed with a breech block, and a barrel mounted to swing on a. vertical axis located forward of the breech block, and a hammer formed as a slide movable longitudinally in a slideway in the frame, the hammer having a lower slide portion entering the slideway in the frame, and an upper exterior iead extending to the rear of the` breech block, with a firing pin movable through an orifice in the breech block.

2. A pistol comprising a frame and stock formed with a. breech block. and a barrel mounted to swing on a vertical axis located forward of the breech block, and a hammer formed as a slide movable longitudinally in a slideway in the frame, with a sear located in upright position in the frame and stock, and mounted to move transversely to the hammer.

3. A pistol comprising a frame and stock formed with a breech block, and a barrel mounted. to swing on a vert-ical axis located forward of the breech block, and a hammer formed as a slide movable longitudinally in a slideway in the frame, with a sear formed as a slide movable transversely to the hammer, located in the frame and stock beneath the hammer slide. y

4. A pistol comprising a barrel and frame, the frame having a breech block behind the barrel, and a stock projecting downward beneath the barrel and forward of the breech block, a sliding hammer in the frame, and a sear formed as an upright bar movable in a recess in the stock.

5. A pistol comprising a barrel and frame, the frame having a breech block behind the barrel, and a stock projecting downward beneath the barrel and forward of the breech block, a sliding hammer having a slide portion movable longitudinally in the frame be` neath the barrel and having` a rear head projecting upward behind the breech block. and a sear formed as an upright bar movable in a recess in the stock.

6. A pistol comprising a frame and barrel pivoted together, a hammer formed as a longitudinally-moving slide, a scar constituting an upright bar engaging said hammer slide at its upper end, a trigger conA nected to operate said sear, and a sear spring pressing up the sear and pressing back the trigger, with means for adjusting its ective stress to vary the trigger pnll.

7. A pistol comprising a barrel and trame,

the frame having a breech block behind the frame, a sear formed as an upright bar housed in the frame, a sear spring pressing the sear into engagement with the hammer, a trigger connected to operate the seal', and means for varying the trigger pull comprising a screw plug adjustable in the frame and receiving the reaction ot said scar spring.

10. A pistol comprising a `frame and a bai.xrel pivoted to swing horizontally thereon, an extractor movable longitudinally ot the barrel, and means adapted upon the swing ing movement of the barrel to operate such extractor to withdraw the shell, and to rolease the extractor to permit the insertion ot a new cartridge.

11. A pistol comprising a trame and a barrel pivoted to swing` horizontally there on, an extractor movable longitudinally7 o? the barrel, a spring for retractinw' the e1;- tractor, and means adapted upon tne swinging movement of the barrel to operate such extractor to withdraw the shell, to ger-mit it to spring back for the insertion ot nev. cartridge.

12. A pistol' comprising a trame and a barrel pivoted to swing horizontally there` on, an extractor movable longitudinally of the barrel, and means adapted upon .the swinging movement of the barrel to oper-- ate such extractor-to withdraw the shell, the extractoroperating means comprising a cam having means for locking it to the Atramo during a portion of the snfinging movement of the barrel.

13. A pistol according to claim 12, the extractorsoperating means con'iprising a cani having detent coacting with the trame and barrel and adapted to lock the cam to the frame during the initial portion of the swinging movement ot' the barrel.

14. A pistol comprising a barrel and trame, with aV sliding hammer movable in a longitudinal recess in the frame, and having a longitudinal bore, a heli-:al main spring and a helical rebound spring in such bore, a stationary block in said. bore between said springs, and a pin i'asteninsaid block to the frame, the hammer having a longitudinal slot traversing said pin.

15. A pistol comprising` va barrel and trame, with a sliding` hammer, a main spring therefor, an arrester piece between said springv and the hammer adapted to strike the frame before the hammer strikes, where` by the springl ceases to impel the hammerl and a rebound spring adapted to move the hammerback after striking.

1G. A pistol comprising a frame and barrel, the latter pivoted on vertical axis. and an extractor carried bythe barrel and movable longitudinally thereof with the swinging movement ot' the barrel, having actuatingl means derivingniotion trom the pivot on which the barrel turns.

17. A pistol comprising a :trame and barrel, the barrel pivoted on a vertical stud iixed to the frame, an extractor carried bythe barrel, and an extmotor-operating means pivoted on such stud to move the extractor rearwardly on the barrel as the barrel swings laterally.

18. A pistol comprising a frame and barrel, the latter pivoted on a vertical axis7 and an extractor carried by the barrel con-v sisting of a tubular slide movable in a longitudinal recess in the barrel and having a retracting spring housed Awithin it.

1S). A pistol according to claim 18, the extractor slide having a longitudinal slot, a pin fixed in the barrel and traversing said slot, and the spring reacting against such pin.

20. A pistol comprising a frame and iarrel, the latter pivoted on va verticalaxis, he trame having a stock beneath the barrel nd fixed breech block behind the barrel, io sto-ck located 'forward or" the breech ttrsecting the stock, the relative arrange-V lll-iROLD l-VESSON. EDVJARD S. POB'IERY. 

